Local United Way receives more than $500K from Ford Windsor workers

Revenue was impacted by the pandemic, but United Way Windsor-Essex County CEO Lorraine Goddard senses a rebound.

“This is to me a real indicator that things are improving in the community,” she said after employees at the Ford Windsor site raised $500,907 through their annual workplace campaign.

“They’ve been fantastic partners looking at new and creative ways to be able to raise additional dollars to support the work that we do.”

Those workers are from Unifor Local 200, Local 240, Leadac Industrial Services and Penske Logistics Canada.

“Time and time again it boggles my mind how generous and, they just give of their hearts and I'm so proud of them,” said campaign co-captain Christina Grossi.

Reveals aren't what they used to be. There was a time when companies, like Ford, would be able to give over $2 million.

However, business has evolved and so has the way the way the United Way operates.

“United Way now is an impact organization. We actually have a strategy, Cradle to Career.” Goddard said. “We’re doing that through ProsperUs which is a collaborative of over 40 system leading partners across the community.”

The program is a 10-year vision to reduce childhood poverty with United Way being the backbone to funding the initiative. Goddard says some success has already been achieved through the program which will be shared with the community in the near future.

“It's astounding to me the number of children in our community or in Canada that go to school hungry every day and that just should not be,” she said.

The Cradle to Career Strategy begins with kids who are kindergarten ready and moves through elementary math and literacy achievement, high school graduation and post-secondary and career success. The goal of this campaign is to raise money to ensure kids have the tools they need to be successful.

“It's not about a thermometer that says get us to $10-million and we'll do what we can,” Goddard said.

Ford campaign donors, like Grossi, have had a chance to sit down and speak with the kids that are benefitting from their fundraising efforts.

“The parents, maybe a single mother who has to work and the kid will come home and take care his siblings now gets, there's a babysitter or they get tutoring or they get the help that they need so they can become successful.”